Is for Good Men to do Nothing
by Barcardivodka
Summary: Sequel to The Only Thing Necessary. Standalone. Pablo is back and after Gibbs, but with Gibbs and Tony's relationship reaching breaking point, will Pablo succeed this time
1. Chapter 1

_This is a sequel to "The Only Thing Necessary for the Triumph of Evil". Prior knowledge of that story is not required (I don't think!)_

_Set during Season One and Two so possible spoilers and Kate is still around._

_Disclaimer: To all who own NCIS, I am merely playing. Please do not punish me_

_Enjoy!_

* * *

The darkness started to lighten. Sound returned, a mass of buzzing with an under laying beat, steady and rhythmic. Feeling returned; dampness, cold, pain. The pain took hold, thumping and unrelenting. The light started to dim, darkness creeping back. Pain started to fade. Memory returned.

He opened his eyes and took a deep breath, pain rushed back and he fought back the threatening darkness with gritted teeth, closed eyes and shallow breaths. After a few minutes the battle won, he opened his eyes once again, chancing a deeper breath, pain flared and throbbed, but the darkness did not threaten.

He focused on the trees swaying in the breeze above him, there was a blurriness about them, he moved his right arm and held his hand above his face, the fingers were blurry, but there were only five of them. He moved his arms to his sides and used his elbows to help push himself up. Pain throbbed in his head and he blinked his eyes several times to keep his focus, the darkness trying to push itself back in from the outer edges of his vision. He took slow deep breaths as the pain settled into a rhythmic throb.

He looked down at his legs and gingerly moved them one at a time, they moved without too much protest. He pushed himself upright, gripping the nearest tree as vertigo rushed him. As it passed he slowly looked up, he couldn't see the top of the cliff through the branches of the trees, something he was grateful for, if he couldn't see the top from the bottom, others couldn't see the bottom from the top. He was astounded that his leap from the cliff top into the canopy of trees below had resulted only in cuts, bruises and a pounding headache, which Ducky would declare a concussion, but staying on the cliff top would have meant certain death.

He looked down at his watch; the face had gone, the time unreadable. He pulled out his cell from his jacket pocket and flipped it open, the casing was cracked, but the phoned worked, and he breathed a sigh of relief that the phone was picking up a signal. He hit speed dial.

"Kate, it's me," he said quietly.

He paused to listen to Kate's reply.

"I don't know; get McGee to track my phone."

He listened as Kate relayed his request. Kate spoke to him, asking a question.

"Pablo," he replied. "He's got Gibbs.

* * *

3 Days earlier

Enrique Pablo had once been a handsome man, suave and sophisticated; he could have charmed the birds from the trees. He had been a man of power and wealth, a leader of men. Others had respected him, had obey his every command. Pablo had had a handsome exterior that housed a soul devoid of humanity that reveled in the pain and humiliation of his fellow man. He had been a monster in a handsome exterior.

He had been the right hand man to Carlos Santos, the biggest drugs baron the world had ever seen. Santos had been his boyhood friend, his boss. Santos had taken them both from poverty and made them wealthy, powerful men. Throughout all of South and Central America Santos's drug cartel were feared, and he, Pablo had had the great honor of overseeing the move into North America. He had succeeded beyond anyone's expectations, even Santos himself. The Cartel had quickly moved from the West Coast, pouring drugs into every state, crushing any opposition as it moved its way to the East Coast, from there Santos had planned to move across the ocean to Europe, to conquer Russia, then Asia, the Middle East, Africa. World domination of the drug trade had no longer seemed ridiculous, a joke no longer, but a real possibility.

However, Pablo had caused its demise. Instead of killing an undercover Federal Agent, Pablo had used all he had learned from his experiments in torture, suggestion and drugs, to turn the Agent, to make them believe they were part of the Cartel. To Pablo, the crowning glory was convincing the Agent that he had in fact murdered himself. It had taken Pablo two long weeks to turn the Agent. Pablo had been beside himself with joy that the Agent had been strong both mentally and physical and Pablo had been able to inflict pain for longer, been able to hit harder, but there was something in the Agent that he couldn't beat out.

Pablo had been convinced he had succeeded and had allowed the Agent to roam his Maryland estate in complete freedom. The Agent had disappeared three days later with information that would bring the Cartel to its knees. Pablo had sent his best men after him, but the Agent had proved resourceful, even after his men had shot him and managed to slow him down, the Agent had killed one of the men with his bare hands and had shot dead two more. He had evaded them once he reached the Interstate.

Pablo had redirected his men to the place he was sure the Agent was heading. He had been right, but the Agent had got there first, the information was now in the hands of others. Pablo had moved fast to minimize the losses, ordering the deaths of all those who could lead back to Santos. He had managed to stop all put two drug shipments; he had been unable to warn his suppliers and informants and had to leave them to the mercy of the American police. Pablo informed Santos the moment the Agent had escaped, and when the information fell into Federal hands, Santos ordered Pablo to return home.

When Pablo reached Santos's sprawling estate the news from America had been bad. Pablo hadn't moved quickly enough, the American Federal Agencies had moved swiftly on the information and had made many arrests. Those arrested had been quick to make deals and give up others. More arrests followed, more deals negotiated, Santos's Cartel collapsed from Washington D.C to the West Coast.

Pablo had expected death for his failure. He got much worse. Pablo believed he had been a master at torture, Santos taught him that he had not even graduated from kindergarten.

Santos had extracted a terrible price for Pablo's failure, he had inflicted such pain and suffering on Pablo, that when Santos had tired of his vengeance, Pablo still lived, crippled, deformed and barely hanging onto sanity. The exterior now matched the interior. Pablo was truly a monster.

Pablo looked down at the Petty Officer whose blood was slowly soaking into the carpet. This one had been a fighter; she had fought with all her might to cling to life. Nevertheless, the out come was inevitable, she had to die, like the others, her sacrifice was required. Pablo bent down and gently touched her cheek. She had been beautiful in life, but now her face was twisted with the ugliness of a violent death, the warmth of her body fading as her heart no longer pumped life through her veins, it sat still and cold in the palm of Pablo's hand.

Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo burned in his brain, but he felt no ill will towards the Agent who had ruined him. No, he felt only admiration for the young man, his strength of mind and body had impressed Pablo. His determination to carry out his mission, even when he had no clue as to why, had astonished Pablo.

The one who made Pablo burn with vengeance was the one who inspired such loyalty in DiNozzo. A loyalty so great that it was engraved on DiNozzo's soul, that no matter what pain and anguish Pablo had inflicted on him, DiNozzo's first and only instinct when he was allowed free was to seek this man out, even though DiNozzo had been convinced that he was a criminal, a murderer, he had still sought this man out.

No, Pablo admired Anthony DiNozzo; he wished him no further harm. It was his boss, which Pablo plotted vengeance. The man that inspired such loyalty, such devotion from one of his men, something Pablo had never been able to do, he had had to rule by fear.

Pablo carefully arranged the Petty Officers heart with the rest of the organs he had removed from her so that they spelled out the name of his tormentor.

_G I B B S_


	2. Chapter 2

* * *

Gibbs landed hard on the ground with an "umphf" being forced out of him, DiNozzo's warning still ringing in his ears. He heard DiNozzo's Sig returning fire.

Gibbs pulled himself up into a crouch, his gun already in his hand; he peered over the hood of the sedan he had dived behind after hearing DiNozzo's shout. He quickly assessed the situation.

McGee and Kate where crouched behind the truck pinned down and unable to return fire. DiNozzo had taken cover behind an old horse chestnut tree returning fire when he could. Ducky and Palmer where crouched behind their truck, Palmer looking startled and Ducky faintly annoyed.

Gibbs moved slightly to get a better view of where the shots were coming from. A derelict building stood across the street, he could see no sign of the shooter. Gibbs suddenly spied movement in one of the top floor windows, shots firing again at McGee and Kate. Gibbs moved into a better position to return fire, he saw DiNozzo suddenly move from the cover of the tree sprinting towards the door of the building 30 feet away. Gibbs watched in mounting fury as DiNozzo reached the building and entered. Gibbs was just about to make a sprint for the tree DiNozzo had abandon when he heard shots from within the building. Gibbs jumped up, slid over the hood of the car and ran for the tree; he paused for a moment assessing the danger, when DiNozzo suddenly appeared at the window shouting an all clear.

Gibbs stalked to the building his fury raising. He heard Kate yell to Ducky making sure he and Palmer were uninjured; Ducky's reply was lost as Gibbs entered the building.

"DINOZZO," he yelled, as he paused in the entranceway.

"Here boss," DiNozzo called, "second floor."

Gibbs ran up the stairs and into a room that would have once been an apartment's living room, where DiNozzo now stood, gun holstered, and the shooter dead on the floor.

Gibbs grabbed DiNozzo by his jacket and slammed him into the wall; DiNozzo looked at Gibbs in startled surprise.

"Don't you ever do that again DiNozzo," Gibbs ground out, punctuating each word with a shove.

"Do what?" DiNozzo asked in genuine bewilderment.

Gibbs left go of DiNozzo and paced back to the door of the room, Kate and McGee stood just outside staring at Gibbs in shock.

"Get your gear," Gibbs snapped. "Get Ducky up here,"

Kate and McGee left without a word.

Gibbs turned back to DiNozzo who was still looking at him in bewilderment.

Gibbs sighed. "Tony, we've been over this before," he said his fury draining away.

"Boss," Tony protested. "He was only shooting at the truck, he never fired in my direction," Tony said, justifying his actions.

"Tony, you went in without backup," Gibbs said, biting back a snarl.

"Kate and McGee were pinned down, they couldn't …" Tony started to explain.

"And what about me Tony?" Gibbs snarled, no longer able to hold it back. His fury rising once again at the stupidity of Tony's action. "You didn't look, you just reacted. Damn it Tony, how many times have we got to go over this?"

He turned his back on Tony trying to control his fury. Trying to control the urge to shake him, to rip in to him until he understood. Words just weren't working, no matter what Ducky said about giving it time. Gibbs needed to make Tony understand that his team was behind him, that they would back him up. That he would never let Tony go in anywhere alone.

Gibbs saw Ducky and Palmer climbing the stairs making their way to the room. Gibbs turned back to Tony.

"Finish processing the scene downstairs, cordon off the area. Get a back-up team out here with a new truck, ours is part of a crime scene for now," Gibbs ordered. Tony silently left the room and with a brief nod to Ducky and Palmer ran down the stairs.

"Ducky, can we move our first DB?" Gibbs asked.

"Yes," Ducky answered, "we were getting ready to move her when the firing started. Thankfully Tony has eagle eyes." Ducky replied, bending down to take a look at the dead body.

"He has something Ducky," Gibbs said sourly. "Palmer, go back downstairs. When DiNozzo gives you the all clear you can move the body."

Palmer gave Ducky a swift look, Ducky nodded his agreement and Palmer turned to leave.

"Tell McGee to bring me a camera and sketchpad," Gibbs called after Palmer's departing back.

"Yes Sir," Palmer acknowledged, as he swiftly ran down the stairs.

Ducky stood up. He couldn't make a proper examination until one of team did the photographs and sketches of the body.

"Anthony?" Ducky questioned.

"What?" Gibbs replied.

"Your sour mood. I take it young Anthony has been doing his usual trick again," Ducky said.

"Ducky, he's giving me a damn ulcer," Gibbs grumbled. "Why won't he listen?"

"Give it time Jethro," Ducky said, taking a step back as Gibbs exploded.

"Time! How much more time Duck?" Gibbs barked. "It's been nine months. He's getting worse not better."

"Jethro," Ducky said placing a reassuring hand on Gibbs shoulder. "Tony went through something that few survive physically, let alone mentally. He is doing better then you think." Ducky soothed.

"Damn it Ducky, I'm the one out here with him every day, "Gibbs argued. "He's getting worse. He has a death wish."

"A death wish Jethro? I think that's taking it a little too far," Ducky said.

"How many times have you patched him up since he's been back on active duty?" Gibbs asked.

"Well, I suppose …." Ducky started, mentally adding up all the times he had treated Tony.

"Four, "Gibbs answered for him. "Four times, two gunshots …."

"Both of which were minor flesh wounds …"

"…. he's been stabbed once ….."

"It wasn't a stab wound, it was a cut …"

"….. which needed thirty eight stitches ….."

"It was a long cut admittedly ….."

"… and he got the crap beaten out of him when he ….."

"Ah now, that wasn't work related …"

"…. went to that bar with Abby." Gibbs finished.

"Jethro, you would have done exactly the same as Tony did. You would not have allowed anyone to manhandle young Abigail," Ducky argued.

"No I won't, "Gibbs agreed, "but I would have listened to reason and to Abby. I would have accepted the apology."

Ducky looked skeptically at Gibbs

"Okay, maybe I would have roughed him up a bit, "Gibbs grudgingly admitted. " But I wouldn't have thrown him across the room into a table, and then got into an argument with the tables former occupants."

"He did take out four of them," Ducky said with a smile of admiration.

"There was eight of them Ducky," Gibbs shot back. "If the bar owner hadn't called the local LEO's Tony could've got a lot worse. He could've died."

"Jethro, I think you're being melodramatic," Ducky said. "Yes he suffered cuts and bruises, nothing…"

"Damn it Ducky," Gibbs interrupted. "Every one of those incidents he could of avoided. He didn't have to get hurt. That bastard caused him enough pain to last several life times," Gibbs paused uncertain of his next words. "I think he likes it Ducky."

"Likes what?" Ducky asked with a frown.

"The pain, I think he needs to have it. He misses it," Gibbs explained. "That's why he puts himself in danger; he doesn't wait for back-up …"

"Jethro!" Ducky exclaimed in astonishment, grabbing Gibbs by the shoulders. "You can't seriously think that?"

"What am I suppose to think Ducky?" Gibbs said stepping out of Ducky's grip. "He's not who he used to be, he's different. That son of a bitch changed him."

"He's different because you treat him differently," Ducky blurted out. Bugger! He hadn't meant to say that, but he hadn't realized how far off track Gibbs had gone.

Ducky had seen changes in Tony; nobody went through what he did without it affecting them somehow. Nevertheless, the changes seemed to be minor. Tony had a tendency to fight dirty now, he didn't hold back as he used to, he wouldn't let anyone put him in a hold, even in jest. He had become a workaholic, rivaling Gibbs with the amount of hours he could pack into a day, but his playboy persona was still firmly in place, his humor and smile genuine to those he called friend. Tony was still too lean for Ducky's liking, but Ducky knew Tony was solid muscle; he was fit, healthy and strong.

The only thing that really bothered Ducky was the fact that Tony still had his beard and moustache; it was fuller now, but neatly trimmed. Tony had always been clean shaven, even when he pulled all nighters and had caught what sleep he could at his desk, he would always find time to clean himself up, brush his teeth, shave, tame his hair, put on a clean shirt. No, the facial hair worried Ducky, he wasn't sure why, but it did, there was something about it he couldn't put his finger on. Nevertheless, Tony had passed all the departments psych tests, a requirement for active duty, but it still bothered Ducky.

Overall, Tony had come through his ordeal relatively well. Kate, McGee and Abby providing security around him when he faltered in his recovery, when his mind would replay his terrible ordeal, when he was in the throes of a violent panic attack unable to distinguish friend from foe. They never questioned, they just accepted, they let Tony come to them. They treated him as if nothing had happened, and Tony had responded to the familiarity of it, he became what he once was, the teams Senior Field Agent.

However, Gibbs had started to treat Tony differently. The head slaps had stopped. Tony was never allowed anywhere outside the building alone. Gibbs undermined his authority, re-issuing orders and assignments, giving Tony duties normally handled by junior agents. Tony had started to rebel. It was obvious to all that Tony pushed himself to earn Gibbs trust, to earn Gibbs approval and when that failed Tony had started to disobey orders, pushing Gibbs to anger and fury. Ducky knew that if Tony couldn't have the good he would take the bad. Gibbs only saw an increasingly erratic behaving Tony. Ducky had been shocked that Gibbs had concluded that this behavior was because Tony was looking for pain, that he had a desire to die.

"What!" Gibbs exclaimed, glaring at Ducky in furious puzzlement.

"Has Abby, Kate or McGee come to you with concerns over Tony?" Ducky asked. Oh well, Ducky thought, in for a penny, in for a pound.

"No …," Gibbs said, frowning in concern

"But they have come to me with concerns over you," Ducky said.

"What concerns?" Gibbs asked

"About the way you treat Tony," Ducky replied. "You undermine his authority in front of them. You won't let him do any interrogations, you won't let him work a scene alone, and you won't let him bring in suspects. You're mollycoddling him Jethro. He's acting the way he is because he's trying to earn your trust, to prove himself to you. You're making him doubt himself; making his torturers words come true." Ducky explained.

"That's not true," Gibbs defended," Ducky, I'm …."

"Worried about him. You're worried he will disappear again," Ducky interrupted. "But you're only making it worse Jethro. Give the boy some space; treat him as you always did. Let him know that nothing has changed. That you trust him."

"Ducky that's not ….."

"Boss, here's the camera and pad you wanted," McGee's voice interrupted.

Gibbs and Ducky swiveled round to look at McGee standing in the doorway, his hands holding out the requested items.

"McGee process the scene, start with the body so Ducky can do his examination," Gibbs ordered, effectively stopping his conversation with Ducky.

Gibbs walked over and looked out of the window. The back-up team had just arrived, Tony greeting them with a cheery wave as he wandered over to them. Kate was busy extracting bullets from the bullet-ridden truck. The scene cordoned off; yellow numbered markers dotted everywhere, the first dead body removed.

Gibbs gazed back at Tony who was explaining the scene to the other team, his arms moving here and there, pointing out things, pausing to listen to a question that made him laugh and hold his hands up in mock surrender, his reply making the other team laugh in turn.

Ducky was right. He had been treating Tony differently. The first few weeks after Tony had returned in horrifying condition had been busy and fraught. The information Tony had retrieved from the Cartel had kept many federal agencies and local police forces busy for months. Gibbs and his team had the task of healing Tony. Video tapes were discovered at Santos's Maryland estate, victims of Pablo's torture, one tape held Tony's name. Gibbs knew every horror that Tony went through; he watched the tape repeatedly until it was imprinted in his mind. He knew how Tony got every bruise, every burn, he knew every scream, every humiliating word that came out of Pablo's lying mouth. He knew when bravery and hope started to slide into disillusion and despair, when defiant words turned to screams of agony and pleas for mercy and he knew the exact moment Anthony DiNozzo, his Senior Field Agent, gave up. Gibbs, for the first time in over a decade, had felt the hot sting of tears fill his eyes.

Gibbs gut had started to burn the moment he realized what Tony had been through and the more he learned the more his gut burned. Night after night, day after day, as Tony struggled to overcome all that had happened to him, when he would flee Gibbs home in wild panic when the present blurred with the past and Gibbs had to chase after him manhandling him into a hold, using all his strength and knowledge to keep the hold firm while Tony struggled and screamed to be free, always talking, talking about anything, cases, girlfriends, last years softball game, anything, his tone soft and soothing, until Tony snapped back into reality.

Tony had healed in an amazing amount of time, he passed his physical, his firearms test and finally he was signed off by the department physiologist and then he was back on active duty. At first, Gibbs had been pleased to have him back, but as time past he had sensed a difference in Tony, something wasn't right. No one else seemed to see it or sense it.

Tony had started to terrify Gibbs.

Gibbs remembered when he first met Tony in Baltimore. A murdered naval office had made Gibbs travel to Baltimore, after an attempt to get sole jurisdiction, Gibbs had settled for sharing it when it became apparent that the naval officer was a victim of a serial killer. The case was going nowhere, the forensic evidence on all the killings was still backed up at the Baltimore crime lab and the naval officer was still in cold storage awaiting an autopsy due to staff shortages at the county morgue. Gibbs had gone to the precient Captain with a proposal. Gibbs would take the naval officer and all the forensic evidence back to NCIS where it would be given priority; a Baltimore Detective would come with him with all the case files and work as a liaison. Any arrest would be by the Baltimore PD Detective.

And that's how he met Tony and the moment he met him he felt a connection with him, there was something about the kid the Gibbs couldn't put into words. Gibbs had worked him hard, long hours, little sleep, demanding information at ungodly hours and Tony had always delivered. He had never disappointed, he seemed more determined to catch the killer then Gibbs. He never backed down from Gibbs, always gave his view, his opinion, would chase up his wild theories and produce results. He was a challenge to work with and Gibbs loved every moment, but he always managed to keep one step ahead, he managed to keep Tony focused on the ultimate goal and they got their killer in less than a month. Gibbs allowed himself a smile as he remembered the first time he witnessed Tony in the interrogation room, he had almost choked on his coffee at Tony's technique, but damn if he had not walked out of the room several hours later with a full confession. All the time they worked together the connection grew stronger.

Tony returned to Baltimore to work out his notice and then returned to NCIS. They had worked well every since. But Gibbs couldn't sense that connection anymore and it terrified him, because he knew with out a doubt that Tony had changed, he appeared to be the same Tony, he acted liked Tony, but something deep inside had changed and one day soon it would consume Tony DiNozzo and Gibbs didn't know how to stop it.


	3. Chapter 3

_Thank you for all of your reviews. I'm sorry I haven't been able to answer them, having some major problems with my internet connection, so have concentrated on getting story posted, but your comments are truly appreciated - Thank You :)_

* * *

Gibbs stepped out of the elevator at precisely 06.00 hours the next morning. As he walked towards the squad room, he could see Tony already at his desk, a common sight these days.

"DiNozzo, what have you got?" Gibbs asked as he strolled past Tony's desk to his own depositing the ever present coffee container onto the desk as he shrugged out of his jacket, this early in the morning there was a nip in the air.

"The shooter from yesterday was one Norman Birkley, 42, no known address, heroin addict, done time for aggravated assault and theft, was out on parole. Arrest warrant was issued four months ago when he stopped reporting to his parole officer and left the halfway house," Tony reeled off

"No firearm charges?" Gibbs queried.

"No, just theft and burglary and one aggravated assault. He was in the Army from '84 to '90, dishonorable discharge due to drug charges, did six months in Leavenworth," Tony paused, picking up a piece of paper from his desk. "Personal effects included a prepaid cell and $500 in $50 dollar bills. Cell was damaged, Abby's going to see if she can get anything from it." Tony finished, finally making eye contact with Gibbs.

"You give your statement to Metro?" Gibbs asked

"Yeah, copy of it is on your desk, ready for the Director," Tony replied.

"Give me what you got on Birkley, this is Hudson's case now," Gibbs ordered

"Gibbs …"Tony started to protest.

"Damn it Tony, you know we can't investigate this case. Birkley was shooting at us and you shot him. It's Hudson's case now," Gibbs growled

Tony picked up the requested files and handed them to Gibbs.

"Anything on our first DB?" Gibbs asked as he turned towards his desk to throw the files on it.

Tony picked up the remote and moved towards the plasma screen; Gibbs moved to stand beside him.

A personnel file picture popped up on the screen.

"Petty Officer Third Class Fiona Williams, 22, currently serving aboard the USS Dakota as an Electronics Technician. Her commanding officer spoke highly of her, no reprimands, no reports, a dedicated officer well liked by her crewmates," Tony stated, looking down at the file he held in his hands. "Lived off base, shared a house with three others. None of the others work for the Navy. Was currently on a four day pass, was due back today."

Tony flipped a page over in the file and looked back up to the plasma screen pressing the remote. The plasma screen filled with pictures of three driver's licenses.

"Her roommates were, Susan Anderson, 24, junior lawyer at McAvoy and Partners. Been working out of the firms Los Angeles office for the last two weeks. Georgina Christie, 23, pastry chef at Nico's restaurant, currently on vacation in Yellowstone Park. Park rangers haven't managed to track her down yet. Pamela Brisco, 22, Administrative Operations Clerk with Metro PD, also on vacation, visiting her parents in Pandora, Texas."

Gibbs listened in silence as Tony reeled off all the facts and information gathered so far in the investigation. The information was concisely given, there were no other comments, no playful remarks, no wild leaps of deduction that seemed completely off the mark, but generally produced crucial information. Gibbs briefly closed his eyes and took a deep breath, he missed the old Tony.

"Ducky done the autopsy?" he asked Tony as he moved away from the plasma screen and sat down at his desk, sorting through the files and paperwork that had accumulated there.

"No yet," Tony replied as he turned from the screen to face Gibbs desk, his eyes on the file he held as he flipped through the pages. "Just got the preliminary. Cause of death, possible asphyxiation due to strangulation, several internal organs were removed and placed by the side of the body."

Tony looked up at the report and directly at Gibbs, frowning

"What?" Gibbs question. He smiled inwardly, he knew that look, Tony had something, a remembered conversation, an article he had read, something some one mentioned during a friendly ball game, the preliminary autopsy report had rung a bell.

"I'm not sure," Tony replied, he sat down at his desk and started to search for information on his computer. "Had a game of one on one with Mike Olson couple of weeks ago, he had a similar case. Young female, home alone, internal organs removed. We weren't involved, but JAG was, one of the victim's room mates was a Petty Officer, she was away at sea at the time," Gibbs stood up from his desk and moved to stand next to Tony's as Tony gave his explanation. "No clues, forensics had nothing. Ah…" Tony stopped typing and looked up at Gibbs. "We've got a serial killer boss."

Gibbs bent in closer to look at Tony's screen.

"Agent Davers team at Pensacola is investigating a murder of a Petty Officer." Tony said, "MO's the same; both victims were young female Petty Officers, home alone. Both died of strangulation and had organs removed."

"Good work Tony" Gibbs said, patting Tony's shoulder as he stood up, "Get the case files from Metro PD and Pensacola. Do a countywide search; see if you can find any other cases. See if you can find a connection between the two Petty Officers and the civilian victim." Gibbs ordered. "I'm going to autopsy."

* * *

Kate stepped out of the elevator at five to seven, she had meant to arrive much earlier but had slept through the alarm, if it hadn't been for some errant car alarm, she would probably still be curled up under the covers. She had tried hard over the past few months to keep up with Gibbs and Tony, when it was just Gibbs in full workaholic mode she hadn't really cared, but when Tony started working all hours, she felt a need to compete, to stay in the game. She had often arrived at her desk at some ungodly hour to find Gibbs and Tony already there, paperwork scattered over desks, theories discussed and discarded, suspects researched and investigated. She felt out of the loop,

Kate had realized some time ago that she couldn't keep up with the hours Tony and Gibbs put in. She acknowledged that she had a life outside of NCIS, not much of one, but one nevertheless. However, she hadn't been able to stop the long hours and the reason had come suddenly to her as she had fallen into bed exhausted one night. It wasn't the need to stay in the game, to compete, it was worry. Worry over Tony. She needed him to know that she was there, that she was his partner, that she would have his back, always, any time, any place.

Tony seemed to have made great progress in his recovery, he was back on active duty, he regained his senior status, he was back to his normal self. Then something seemed to change, the long hours started, there was a sudden hardness about him, a meanness she had never seen before. She had started to worry and she had kept to the brutally long hours because she knew that her partner needed her, she hadn't figured out why, just that he did.

She turned into the squad room to find Tony kneeling on the floor picking up files.

"That's okay Tony, you don't have to kneel before me," she commented with a smile as she walked around and sat behind her desk.

"Funny Kate," Tony muttered back, as he stood up and threw the wayward files onto his desk.

"What's with all the paperwork?" Kate asked, nodding to the files on his desk.

"Serial killer," Tony answered

"The shooter?" Kate queried as she stood up from her desk and moved to stand in front of Tony's.

"No, the Petty Officer." Tony explained. "Same MO as a Petty Officer murdered in Pensacola six weeks ago and a civilian in Washington a month ago." Tony explained.

"What's the MO?" Kate queried

"Death by strangulation and internal organs removed post mortem," Tony explained. Tony stood up and picked up the remote for the plasma screen, "These are the crime scene photographs", he said, a series of photographs flashed on the screen, he brought one to the foreground. "This is from the first known murder at Pensacola, look at the internal organs."

Kate moved to get a closer look. "Looks as if they've just be pulled out of the body, the intestines still look like they're attached," Kate observed.

Tony flicked onto the next picture. "This is the civilian case," he said

"The organs have been severed, deliberately placed by the side of the body," Kate said.

"And this is our case," Tony said, as a third photograph popped up on the screen.

"Again, the organs have been severed and placed next, no wait …" Kate paused, she looked at Tony and then back at the photograph. "They form a pattern of some sort."

"That's what I thought," Tony confirmed. "I think our killer tried to spell something out using the internal organs, a message of some kind."

"But there's no noticeable word structure," Kate argued.

"Internal organs are pretty slippery Kate," Tony said, "Petty Officer Williams was killed in the kitchen, which has a tiled floor. I think the organs slipped out of place."

"Tony, that's pretty thin," Kate said. "I …"

"Look," Tony interrupted, turning back to the photograph, "look at the blood trail, the organs have been placed into one position, but slipped, you can see the smear marks."

Kate gave Tony a questioning look, but moved to look at the photograph.

"It's a possibility Tony, but, a killer leaving worded messages using internal organs, I don't think so," Kate theorized.

"Damn it Kate," Tony suddenly snapped. "This is classic serial killer behavior, an escalation in violence, more precision, a taunting of authority."

"Tony, I agree that's usual serial killer behavior, "Kate replied carefully, "and we have it in these three killings, the placing of the organs outside of the body has become more precise, has more precision, but there is nothing there to indicate that the killer is trying to communicate with written messages made from internal organs. There is no discernible word structure. It's probably a pattern that has meaning to the killer, which will become more elaborate the more times he kills." Kate explained.

Tony threw the plasma screen remote onto McGee's desk with a loud clatter. He turned to faced Kate.

"DiNozzo," Gibbs voice broke in.

"Boss?" Tony queried without breaking eye contact with Kate

"Autopsy, now," Gibbs growled.

Tony looked away from Kate towards Gibbs.

"Boss?" he question again.

"Now DiNozzo," Gibbs growled again.

With a quick glance at Kate, Tony turned away and walked towards Gibbs, Kate moved to follow.

"Not you Kate," Gibbs said. "Chase up Metro, we need their physical forensic from the crime scene.

Tony followed Gibbs to the elevator to take them down to autopsy.

"Ducky find anything interesting?" Tony asked.

Gibbs gave him a glance. "Nope, but Abby did."

"Abby?" Tony queried. "Shouldn't we be going to the lab boss?"

Gibbs gave Tony another glance, but said nothing. Tony lapsed into silence.

It wasn't until they walked through the autopsy doors that Gibbs spoke again.

"Sit" he commanded, pointing to one of the autopsy tables.

Tony looked across at Ducky who was stood beside the table and then back to Gibbs.

"What for?" he questioned.

"DiNozzo just do as Ducky says," Gibbs growled, before turning and walking out of autopsy.

"Ducky?" Tony asked, moving towards the older man.

"I'm afraid Jethro is following my advice," Ducky explained. "Rather badly, I might add."

"What advice?" Tony queried.

"To not let his temper take hold of his tongue. Tony, please take a seat," Ducky said, patting the autopsy table, Tony stayed where he was. "As you know, Jake Hudson's team and Metro PD took over the investigation into the man who shot at you, Gibbs and the others yesterday."

Tony nodded. "Yeah, so."

"According to your statement, the shooter, for want of a better description, fired two rounds from a 9mm automatic, you fired two rounds, both hitting him in the chest," Ducky explained.

"Ducky, what's this to do with you?" Tony said in exasperation. "No disrespect, but Jake can talk to me anytime he wants if my statement needs verification, it was a justifiable shooting."

"Tony, my dear boy, no one is disputing your side of things," Ducky smile gently, "Indeed all the forensic evidence supports your statement, it's just that Abby found something that you hadn't included."

"Hadn't included," Tony echoed. "Ducky my report was accurate to the last dotted I. I've been doing this a long time; I know how to write a detailed report." Tony fumed, he started to pace along the length of the table. "I ran up the stairs, I could hear Birkerly still shooting at Kate and McGee. I kicked in the door, identified myself; Birkerly dropped the rifle and pulled out a Glock. I rolled to the right, he fired twice, I returned fire. I won, he died. End of story." Tony explained angrily.

"Abby found blood on one of the bullets," Ducky explained, holding up his hand as Tony went to interrupted. "It was one of Birkerly's bullets, the blood DNA came back as yours. Gibbs is somewhat miffed that you hid another injury from him. That's why you're here, for me to check you over." Ducky said.

"Oh," Tony said. "Why didn't Gibbs tell me that himself?"

"I believe in Gibbs present mood he would be more inclined to do some damage himself," Ducky explained. "Tony, are you injured?"

"Ducky, I swear to you, I didn't realize at the time that I had been hit," Tony said. "It wasn't until I changed my shirt that I saw the blood. It's just a graze."

Ducky patted the autopsy table and smiled. "Take your jacket and shirt off and I'll have a look."

Tony sighed in defeat. There was no way out. He took of his jacket and laid it across the end of the table, his shirt swiftly following. Ducky snapped on a pair of gloves and started to probe the recent wound on Tony's left side, just below his ribcage. Tony was right, the wound was just a graze, barley more that a scratch. Ducky stood up and pulled off the gloves.

"You can get dressed now Tony," he said. "The wound looks fine."

"Thanks Ducky," Tony replied as he pulled his clothes back on. "I don't know why Gibbs gets so mad. We're field agents, comes with the territory."

Ducky looked at Tony. "Jethro gets so mad Tony because he is worried about you."

"Yeah right," Tony muttered his eyes focused on his shirt as he buttoned it up. The slap across the back of his head surprised him into looking up and straight at Ducky.

"Damn it Ducky," he snapped, as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Tony, you really can be quite dense at times," Ducky snapped back, his own concern and worry for Tony loosening his tongue. "Can't you see everyone is worried about you? People care for you. We thought you were dead Tony. Those damn bastards set us up to believe you were dead, and all the time they had you locked away torturing you."

It was Ducky's turn to pace up and down the length of the autopsy table.

"I had a conversation with Jethro yesterday morning about you, after the shooting. I told him to be patient, it takes time to heal from the horrors you endured. He thought you had a death wish, or a need to feel pain. I stood up for you Tony; I told Gibbs it was his fault you had changed. That the way he treated you was the reason you were so reckless. But I was wrong, wasn't I?" Ducky said quietly.

"You had healed, you had to pass the Psyche tests and the physical before you could get back onto active duty and you did, with flying colors. But something set you back, didn't it?" Ducky asked, looking at Tony. "Gibbs was right, you have changed. You have become reckless, going in without backup, not wearing your vest. You do want the pain, don't you? Not because you want to die, but to remind yourself that you are still alive." Ducky theorized.

Tony had broken Ducky's gaze by looking down at the floor, he had been trying so hard to keep Gibbs, McGee, Abby and Kate from seeing what was happening to him that he forgot all about Ducky. Ducky, who had always patched him up in the past with a kind word and gentle touch, who had stood in front of him and defended him against Gibbs anger, who with his medical training, military service and long experience with life, had hit the nail on the head. Tony knew how to use Gibbs anger to his advantage to keep Gibbs off balance, keep him guessing, but with Ducky, there was no defense, no way out, only the truth would do. Tony looked up when Ducky remained silent, unshed tears glistening in his eyes.

"My dear boy," Ducky said, stepping forward, meaning to comfort Tony, but Tony took a step back, shaking his head.

"No," he plead. "Please Ducky, no." He patted his chest with the palm of his hand. "I hurt, inside. The memories are overwhelming. They hurt." He continued walking backwards until he came up against the wall; he slid down it until he was sat on the floor. "He infected me Ducky. I can feel the rage. The need to lash out and cause pain." Tony whispered brokenly.

"Who has infected you?" Ducky asked gently, slowly moving towards Tony.

"Pablo," Tony answered, looking straight ahead, seeing what was in his mind and not in front of his eyes. "Gibbs knows I'm broken. He can't fix me this time," the unshed tears silently escaped, sliding unheeded down his face. "He doesn't know how."

Ducky sat down next to Tony, placing a comforting hand on Tony's upturned knee.

"Tony, "he said gently. "This is just a set back; flashbacks are common in Post Traumatic Stress syndrome. Anything can set one off, and they can become so real, you relive the whole experience again. Wanting to lash out and cause pain is because you feel angry and irritable, you want the whole experience to end, you feel out of control. You are a good man Anthony DiNozzo, you are nothing like that monster Pablo, and you never, ever will be, no matter what happens in your life," Ducky stated emphatically. Tony turned to look at Ducky. Ducky gave Tony's knee a reassuring squeeze.

"Surely the psychologist explained all this too you Tony?" Ducky asked. "That, all though you felt fine, certain events could cause you to regress. What signs to look out for?"

Tony shook his head. "We did the usual shrink stuff, how I felt then and now, that kinda thing. I took the psyche tests, past them, went back to work." Tony explained.

"You didn't have any follow up appointments? To make sure you were coping back on active duty?" Ducky enquired.

"No, just told to come back if I need to," Tony replied.

"Why didn't you go back Tony, when all this started?" Ducky asked.

"I thought I could control it Ducky. I thought I was over it. Then it became …last time Gibbs helped me through it … but this time …. "Tony shook his head, tilting his head back against the wall. "I couldn't, hell Ducky this is going to sound …" Tony took a deep breath, letting it out slowing, turning his head to look at Ducky again. "I lost Gibbs," he said.

"Lost Gibbs?" Ducky asked with a confused frown.

"I've always … sensed Gibbs. I somehow knew if he was in trouble. I always knew how far to push him, what to say, the best time to say it," Tony explained. "But it's gone, all I feel is anger and dread. I almost punched McGee out last week, because he walked into me at a crime scene, and today, I nearly slapped Kate, I so badly wanted to slap her Duck, just because she disagreed with me." Tony paused, rubbing a hand across his face, wiping away the tears. "I didn't know how to tell Gibbs. I knew he knew, but I couldn't … I felt so certain that Pablo had infected me, that I was turning into him. I didn't think Gibbs could help me."

"Jethro was in Desert Storm Tony," Ducky said. "Many came back with varying degrees of PTS. It was during that time that it was first considered as a medical condition. He would have seen or indeed felt its effects." Ducky explained. "Jethro will be able to help you through until you feel ready to go back to the physiologist, although to be frank, I would probably go to a different one, the last one sounds a bit slap dash."

"Thanks Ducky," Tony said. Having someone else know had eased his mind. In truth, he didn't feel any better, but at least there was a light at the end of the tunnel, whereas before it had been unrelenting darkness. Ducky stood up with a creak of bones.

"I'll make some tea Tony," he said, as he walked to his office, the instilled British belief that a cup of tea solved any and all problems hard to overcome.

Tony stayed on the floor, leaning against the wall. He thought back to when all this had kicked off. Ducky was right, he had healed, or so he thought, until a normal, practically everyday event in his line of work, pushed all the light from his being, filling it with darkness and anger. It had been a simple case, easily solved. A dumb sailor and a greedy civilian trying to defraud the Navy, but when Gibbs and he had gone to arrest them, all hell broke lose, the sailor came quietly enough, but the civilian ran. He had given chase, gaining all the time, over fences, jumping over trash, then the civilian had run down the wrong alley, a dead end. Tony followed him in, talking easy, smiling, defusing the tension, but the civilian had shown why he had been so easily found out, he bent and picked up a discarded metal pipe, a useless weapon against an armed federal agent.

Tony drew his weapon, yelling for the pipe to be thrown down, but the civilian went crazy, letting out a yell he ran towards Tony, the pipe held high and Tony had snapped out of reality and relived his torture, only seeing Enquire Pablo and his second in command Miguel Valdez advancing on him with baseball bats, laughing and jeering him as he struggled against his bonds trying desperately to get away from the on coming pain and humiliating words.

He was snapped back into reality by Gibbs voice yelling at him, the civilian was on the alley floor yelling and screaming with a bullet hole in his leg, the pipe out of reach, kicked out of the way by Gibbs. He had look across at Gibbs _"What the hell where you thinking_ _Dinozzo, he damn near took your head off",_ Gibbs had yelled over the roar in his ears, he had muttered back an apology and had moved forward to handcuff the civilian, and from that night and every night since he had woken screaming in the darkest hours as he was plagued by dark memories.

He knew that it was changing him, making him harder, meaner, as he attempted to fight the horror, but he couldn't stop it. Gibbs had sensed something as he stopped Tony from going anywhere alone, won't let him anywhere near the interrogation room or even a suspect and worse of all the head slaps stopped, and Tony lost his connection with Gibbs and the darkness that had surround him became blacker and engulfed him and each day it had become a little bit harder to sound normal, to smile, to laugh, to go for a wing shot instead of the kill.

Tony pulled back the cuffs of his shirt and look at the scars surrounding his writs, the scars were still red and visible, it would take some years from them to fade to silvery white. He ran a finger over one of them, not feeling the smooth healed skin, but feeling the bite and pain as the manacles that caused them gouged itself into his skin.

Tony snapped out of his reprieve as Ducky dashed past him, the sound of a phone ringing finally registered.

"Blast it," Ducky said as he got to the phone the moment it stopped ringing. The ringing started again, but a different pitch, coming from somewhere else in the room. Tony and Ducky looked at each other, Tony struggling to his feet as it dawned on him that it was his cell, sitting in his jacket pocket, the jacket still laid across the autopsy table. He made a lunge for the jacket, pulled the phone out and snapped it up. "DiNozzo" he snapped only to be met with dead air. He scrolled into the phone to look up the last caller.

"Gibbs," he said to Ducky, just as the man in question barged through the autopsy doors.

Gibbs opened his mouth to snap out a sarcastic comment and then snapped it shut, he had left DiNozzo in Ducky's care for a reason. He looked across at Ducky who gave a small shrug.

"Grab your gear DiNozzo, we've another dead Petty Officer, you too Ducky," he said as he walked back out of autopsy, Tony at his heel.


	4. Chapter 4

* * *

The body was a mess, the torso sliced open pubic bone to breastbone, the sternum cracked opened, the ribs pulled outwards. What should have lain inside was strewn about the body, lungs, kidneys, uterus, and feet of intestine. It was if the body had exploded from the inside out, like _Alien _Kate thought, cursing as she caught herself comparing the crime scene to a movie. By the feet of the body, very precisely and with great care the word _GIBBS _was spelt out, she guessed the main wording was done with the lower intestines, each piece neatly cut and placed to clearly spell the word out, no ambiguity this time. The heart making the dot of the I, although, Kate noted, the word was spelt in capitals, there was no need for the heart above the I. Kate looked up from the body and saw Tony staring at her with a look of smug satisfaction. Kate turned away, pretending to look for her sketchpad, while cursing silently for a second time. 

"We got a time of death Duck?" Gibbs asked.

"Unfortunately not a very precise one," Ducky answered.

"Why's that?"

Ducky stood up from where he had been examining the body and held out the liver in his hand for Gibbs inspection.

"Having the liver on the outside of the body makes a bit of a difference, the liver probe is useless," Ducky replied. "However, lividity is fixed and the body is in full rigor, so the poor girl has been dead approximately eight to thirty-six hours. I can get you a more accurate time once I get her home and test the potassium levels in the vitreous fluid of her eye." Ducky explained.

"Mutilation before or after death?" Gibbs asked.

"Postmortem thankfully," Ducky said. "Cause of death is asphyxiation," he crouched down beside the body, Gibbs following suit. "Cyanosis around the lips and fingertips," Ducky stood back up and walked to the feet of the corpse where the word _GIBBS_ sat, Ducky pointed to the heart. "Intensive heart congestion, see here," he crouched down again, waggling his finger over the heart. "The right-side ventricle is enlarged. All signs of strangulation. I'll of course know more when I …"

"Get her to autopsy," Gibbs finished off for him with a smile. "We'll just finish up the sketches and photos Duck, then she's all yours."

Ducky looked down at the writing. "Someone toying with you Jethro?" Ducky asked.

Gibbs grunted, sickened to his core that some lunatic with a grudge against him had killed so many.

"BOSS, FOUND SOMETHING," DiNozzo hollered from the apartments bathroom. Gibbs walked around the corpse, stepped over the internal organs and followed the numbered yellow markers DiNozzo and McGee had laid out, leading to the bathroom.

"What you got?" he asked as he got to the bathroom door. DiNozzo moved to his left, allowing Gibbs to see the perfect bloody handprint on the bathroom mirror, it took Gibbs a second to realize what was wrong with it, it only had three fingers, the print of the middle finger was missing.

"Rest of the apartment done?" Gibbs asked.

"Got the hallway to the bedroom and the bedroom itself to do Boss," DiNozzo replied.

Gibbs nodded and walked back towards the living room.

"McGee grab a measure and hold it up against the palm print," DiNozzo said. McGee rummaged in the kit and stepped towards the mirror, bumping into DiNozzo. DiNozzo felt McGee stiffen; he took a step to the right to allow McGee more room to pass.

"Tony I'm sorry, I …" McGee started to apologize in a rush.

"Not a problem Probie," DiNozzo interrupted. "Kinda cozy in here." He could almost touch the relief that came off McGee in waves.

"Tim, I want to apologize for the other week. I shouldn't have yelled at you like that," DiNozzo said softly.

"Oh, that's okay Tony …. I should have watched, "McGee started to say, DiNozzo held his hand up to stop him.

"No Tim, no excuses, it was an accident. I was way out of line," DiNozzo said. "I've had some … stuff to deal with; I took it out on you. Sorry man." DiNozzo explained, moving to get a good shot of the handprint, waiting for McGee to place the measure next to it.

"Tony," McGee started hesitantly. "I don't know how you …. I mean, what you went through, you're entitled to an off day now and then."

DiNozzo squeezed McGee's shoulder. "Thanks man," he said, wishing McGee was right, and it was the odd day here and there that got the better of him, and not the endless days that had turned into an endless hell.

* * *

McGee slammed the doors of the truck shut having helped DiNozzo stow their gear. Gibbs and Kate were finishing interviewing the victim's neighbors, Ducky and Palmer having already left with the body. McGee walked to the small wall that separated the apartment block grounds from the sidewalk trying to ascertain the chances of someone approaching the front of the building without being noticed. He heard DiNozzo return with the rest of the gear, McGee went to turn to head back to the truck to open the doors when he felt something whiz past his head, the report of a rifle immediately following.

"TIM GET DOWN," DiNozzo yelled, dropping the gear he was carrying and drawing his weapon, he saw McGee obey, scrabbling for cover next to the small wall. DiNozzo went to move forward, but the bullets started flying forcing Tony to take cover behind Gibbs sedan. The firing stopped for a brief moment before starting again, Tony took a chance and made a quick look over the trunk of the car. The unseen shooter targeting the wall where McGee was, the hail of bullets eating way at the wall, masonry flying in all directions, McGee was forced to lie on the ground to try to evade the sting of the flying masonry.

"MCGEE," Tony yelled over the firing, "TIM?"

"I'M OKAY TONY," McGee yelled back. Tony risked another look, realizing that McGee's cover was being slowly eaten away. Tony checked his clip and stood up, meaning to fire at the shooters position, but the spray of bullets headed back for the sedan and Tony was forced to duck back down again. The firing returning to McGee's position. Tony heard his phone ringing; he pulled it from his jacket pocket, looking at the caller id.

"Boss," he greeted.

"DiNozzo, what the hell?" Gibbs growled. Tony looked towards the apartment's entrance, spying Kate and Gibbs, guns drawn, taking cover.

"Hey," DiNozzo snapped back. "He's not shooting at me, he's targeting McGee."

"You got a line on the shooter?" Gibbs asked, ignoring Tony's remarks.

"Across the street, third window your left, brick built building," Tony replied. "Fully automatic, only taking a couple of seconds for a new clip."

Tony heard Gibbs swear down the phone, he heard Kate's voice, but couldn't make out what she was saying.

"Boss?" Tony queried.

"DiNozzo," Gibbs acknowledged.

"You remember Guam boss?" Tony asked.

"Guam? DiNozzo what the hell are…?" Gibbs paused. "DiNozzo, No. Don't you …" Tony snapped the phone shut, cutting Gibbs off.

"TIM," Tony yelled.

"TONY, I CAN'T …. McGee broke off coughing.

"ITS OKAY MCGEE. WHEN I YELL NOW, YOU HEAD FOR ME. FLY LIKE THE WIND," Tony yelled back.

"OKAY," McGee acknowledged.

Tony carefully maneuvered himself so that he could open the front door of the sedan; he reached in and opened the glove compartment, grabbing Gibbs spare clips. He pulled back out and shut the door. He checked his weapon again and then waited. The sounds of sirens could be heard over the shooting. He continued to wait, knowing McGee's cover wasn't going to hold out of much longer, there was a pause in the firing. Tony jumped up and started firing, Gibbs and Kate moving from cover, firing as well.

"NOW MCGEE," Tony yelled, pausing in firing only long enough to slide in a new clip.

McGee scrambled up and ran as fast as he could, his vision blurred by tears, as his eyes protected themselves from all the masonry debris. He didn't slow down as he approached the sedan but slid head first over the hood landing on the other side with a thud.

Tony ducked down behind the sedan; turning to grin at the dust covered McGee.

"Nice of you to drop in," he quipped.

McGee gave a smile back, more in relief then anything else.

"Thanks Tony," he rasped his throat sore from the dust.

"You got any bullets in you?" Tony asked, looking McGee over with a critical eye. McGee was covered in dust from head to toe and had several nicks and cuts from the flying debris, but Tony couldn't see any more serious wounds.

"No, I'm good Tony," McGee replied. "Where's Gibbs and Kate?"

Gibbs was currently standing with his back against the brick built building that housed the shooter; Kate was in a similar position the other side of the building's entrance. He and Kate had moved forward across the street and towards the building, all the while firing at their target along with DiNozzo. From DiNozzo's first shot, too McGee getting to safety, to Gibbs and Kate getting to the entrance of the building, had taken no more than thirty seconds. Gibbs spared a quick glance towards the bullet ridden sedan across the street, thankful that Tony had stayed put, making sure that McGee was okay, instead of making his way across open ground to provide backup. Although the firing had stopped, the situation was still dangerous. Gibbs gave Kate a count down and they entered the building.

* * *

"What you got for me Abs?" Gibbs asked as he entered the lab, large Caff-Pow in hand.

"Oh my God Gibbs, are you okay? Where's McGee? Is he okay?" Abby asked in a rush, taking the Caff-Pow as she hugged Gibbs.

"We're all fine Abby," Gibbs replied, giving Abby a brief hug back before stepping out of the hold. "McGee got a few cuts, bit shook up. He'll be fine."

"And Kate and Tony?" Abby asked, gulping down some of her drink.

"Abby, everyone is fine." Gibbs promised. "What you got for me?" he repeated.

Abby gave Gibbs a long look, satisfying herself that all was well. "Okay, the blood on the handprint is the same type as the victim, O positive. I'm running DNA to confirm." She pointed to one of her computer screens. "Currently running the finger prints through AFIS, no match yet."

She turned to another machine, typing in a quick command.

"The fingerprints of the second shooter doesn't match the bloody handprint," an arrest record pop up onto the computer screen. "Your shooter is Matthew Henderson, 39. Done some time for burglary, theft, aggravated assault, mainly to feed a cocaine habit."

Gibbs moved in closer to the screen.

"Similar profile to the first shooter, Birkley." Gibbs said.

"Yep, and that's not all. Henderson is also former Army. Did a year at Leavenworth for Dereliction of duty, dishonorable discharged in '90."

"Same year as Birkley," Gibbs said.

"Same cell too," Abby smiled.

Gibbs smiled at Abby as he bent and kissed her forehead.

"Good work Abs, let me know when you get a hit …..." Gibbs started to say.

"McGee!" Abby squealed, before bounding towards McGee and hugging him.

"Oomph," McGee grunted as Abby proceed to hug the life out of him. He hugged Abby back grateful to have something solid and real to hang onto after this mornings events.

Gibbs let the hug continue for longer then he would normally have allowed, knowing that a genuine hug from Abby was sometimes all you needed to get your balance back. McGee had done well today, he kept his head, he kept control of his fear and Gibbs was proud of the young man, he was shaping up to be a fine agent.

"McGee, was there a purpose to your visit?" Gibbs asked, he smiled inwardly as McGee flushed and untangled himself from Abby.

"Oh, um, yes, er, sorry boss," McGee stuttered out. "The suspect has arrived from General. I had him put in interrogation."

"Abby, let me know when you get a hit with those fingerprints," he said as he strode out of the lab, McGee in pursuit.

"Will do bossman, "Abby said with a grin at his departing back

Gibbs had just disappeared from sight when one of her computers beeped. Abby walked over to scan the result.

"Oh no, oh no that can't be right, please don't be right" she whispered to herself in horror.

* * *

Tony walked into autopsy, the automatic doors allowing him unhindered entrance.

"Hey Ducky," Tony greeted, "Gibbs wants to know if you have a TOD yet?"

Ducky looked up from the corpse he was examining as Tony entered. He snapped off his gloves and pulled his blood covered apron off, throwing them into the required bin. He walked to his desk and picked up a clipboard.

"Potassium levels would indicate that she died somewhere between 20.30hrs and 04.00hrs. I'm afraid that's as close as I can get," Ducky said.

"Neighbors didn't see or hear anything. The door lock was undamaged, so whoever our killer is, she let them in." Tony replied.

"I hear you had a bit of excitement after Mr. Palmer and myself left," Ducky said. "A second shooter?"

"Yeah, nearly got lucky this time," Tony replied.

"How is young Timothy? I trust the EMT's were satisfied with his condition and he didn't take a leaf out of your book by signing an AMA," Ducky said, giving Tony a disapproving glare.

"He's fine Ducky, just some cuts from flying missionary, bit shaky. He's okay, he did good today," Tony replied. "Gibbs got the guy."

"Dead?" Ducky asked.

"Winged him, he's over at General being patched up, should be able to question him today," Tony replied.

"And you Tony, how are you feeling?" Ducky asked.

"I'm f ….." he let the word trail off as Ducky advanced on him with a damn near perfect Gibbs glare, Tony sighed. "Ducky, I don't know," he answered honestly. "I'm just trying to focus on this case, trying not to think. I know I need help, that I need to talk to someone. But I can't do it with Jack the Ripper running about."

Ducky stared at him for so long, Tony felt himself start to flush, he opened his mouth to say something, anything when Ducky suddenly broke the stare and moved away.

"Jack the Ripper, the worlds first documented serial killer. A very interesting comparison, his viciousness grew with each victim. Death was by strangulation, the general theory on this, of course, was to stop any screams, but he always cut their throats afterwards as well, again the mutilation of the victims increased with …………" Ducky stopped in his lecture at the sound of a phone ringing.

Ducky and Tony looked at each other, before Tony realized the ringing was coming from him. He dug his phone out and flipped it open. "DiNozzo". He listened for a few seconds and then closed the phone.

"Sorry Ducky gotta go. That was Gibbs," Tony apologized as he swiftly left autopsy.

Ducky shrugged, and went to get a fresh apron and gloves.

* * *

Gibbs and Tony entered the interrogation room, Gibbs taking a seat opposite the suspect, Tony leaning casually on the wall within the suspect's sight.

Gibbs opened the folder he had placed on the table.

"Matthew Henderson," he looked up at the suspect, Henderson had his right arm in a sling, a graze from one of Gibbs bullets requiring stitches but nothing else. Gibbs looked back down at the file, snapped it shut and looked back up.

"Why'd you kill her? Why'd you kill the others?" Gibbs asked. Henderson sat straighter in his chair, shock written on his face.

"I didn't kill any body," he protested. "I aint killed no girls."

"But you like trying to kill federal agents," Tony said, still leaning causally against the wall.

"I aint killed nobody, I aint a murderer," Henderson claimed.

"So why were you firing an automatic weapon at my agents today," Gibbs asked mildly. "Henderson, we've got you on the attempted murder of a federal agent and you are our main suspect in the murder of three female Petty Officers." Gibbs explained

Henderson leant forward in his chair. "Look I don't know nothing about no Petty Officers. I was just paid to shoot at one of you CSI guys. I weren't gonna kill him, the man said just to shake him up, sure I'd have earned another five hundred if I'd winged him," he explained. "But I didn't want to hurt him too bad."

"What man?" Gibbs asked, passing on the urge to explain to the idiot in front of him that he had come very close to killing McGee, with fully automatic fire he would have put half a dozen slugs into McGee before he realized he had.

"The man," Henderson shrugged, wincing as the stitches in his arm pulled. "I don't know his name, we met in a bar. He brought me a couple of drinks, said he knew I'd been in the army, that he needed some people to do a job for him. Well you know, I aint stupid. I thought he might be a cop or something, so I says no." Henderson paused, looking from Gibbs to Tony and then back to Gibbs.

"But …" Gibbs prompted.

"But then he mentioned Mickey."

"Mickey who?" Tony asked.

"Mickey, just Mickey. Use to do a few jobs for him, you now, a bit of muscle now and then. Well this guy gets to talking about Mickey and he knew a lot about him. Mickey was a stand up guy, yeah he rolled over when he got arrested a few months back, but he only took down a couple of fish. Had to give the cops something to get a lighter sentence, but nothing more, didn't give up any of us other guys. Can't blame a guy for trying to get outta a life sentence," Henderson said.

"What did Mickey get arrested for?" Gibbs asked.

"Drugs, was a supplier. Was doing okay, making big bucks, he always paid well when he wanted a job doing. But he got caught up in that big drugs bust a few months back; he was one of Santos's boys." Henderson explained.

Gibbs felt more then saw Tony push away from the wall. Gibbs glanced round at Tony, his face was ashen, his face unreadable. Gibbs turned back to Henderson.

"This man, what did he do after he mentioned Mickey?" Gibbs asked.

"Well, I figger if he knew Mickey, he was okay, kinda warmed to him after that. We talked a bit more. He explained that he wanted a couple of feds out of the way. He wasn't worried if they got killed, but I said I didn't do that kinda thing. He seemed okay with that. Said he'd pay five hundred bucks to anyone who'd take the job, needed three or four guys. I said I could find some guys." Henderson lent back into the chair. "Can I smoke?"

"No," Gibbs said. "You were saying ….."

"Yeah, right, anyway then he got a bit funny, said he knew I was a junkie and the guys I was going call were probably junkies, but if we weren't clear headed on the day he needed us, he'd cut our hearts out while we were still alive," Henderson explained, gulping at the remembered memory. "I believed him too, the way he said it, gave me the creeps. Said he'd been let down in the past, Anyway, he said he'd be in touch in a couple of days to check out the new guys, "Henderson said.

"Who did you call up?" Gibbs asked.

"Some old army buddies, Norman Birkley, Ted Perella, and Sam Alderton, they all did jobs for Mickey as well," Henderson replied.

"When did you next meet up?" Gibbs asked.

"Couple of days later. The guy turns up again when I was at the bar, said to bring the guys and meet him at a warehouse on Pier 6 later that night," Henderson said.

"Which you went to?"

"Yeah, we all met him there, he looked the guys over. Gave us all a phone each, said he would ring us when he needed us, and give us a date, time and address. At the address would be weapons and five hundred bucks," Henderson answered.

"Which warehouse?" Gibbs asked.

"Um, it was on the west side, furthest way from the Pier office, twelve, I think," Henderson replied.

"What did this guy look like?"

"He wore black, only saw him at night. Always wore one of them hooded things, only thing I really saw were his hands. One was all stuck together and curled up, looked shiny, more like a claw than a hand, but the other one looked all right at first till you noticed that it was missing a finger," Henderson shuddered.

"Which finger?" Gibbs asked.

"Middle finger," Henderson replied.

"That will do for now, "Gibbs stood up, picking up his file and heading for the door, he had to get Tony out of the room, he could feel the tension rolling off him. A few months ago Gibbs wouldn't have worried, he could have handle Tony, but now, today, he had no idea had Tony would react.

"Hey, am I free to go now?" Henderson asked.

Gibbs and Tony left the room.


	5. Chapter 5

_My apologies for the loooong delay in chapters. They should be coming a whole lot quicker in future. Thank you for all your kind reviews and your PM's._

_A short chapter this time, but more adventure and heartache to come_

* * *

As Tony and Gibbs stepped out of the room, joining Kate and McGee in the corridor, who had been listening in to the interrogation from the adjoining room, Abby came storming around the corner.

"Guys, guys, you've got to come back to the lab," she demanded.

"What's up Abs?" Gibbs asked with a measure of concern.

"Please Gibbs, come to the lab," Abby insisted, as she grabbed Gibbs arm and tried to tug him after her. "The fingerprints got a hit."

"Abby what's the big rush; do they belong to President Bush?" Kate joked.

"No, no it's worse then that," Abby said in despair. "Please Gibbs."

"Okay Abby, lead they way," Gibbs said, reclaiming his arm, his concern for Abby going up another couple of notches. Maybe he should stop bringing her so many Caff-Pows, because if it wasn't a caffine high Abby was on, then Gibbs was dreading what they would find in the lab.

They all followed Abby to the lab. Abby immediately going to her computers, the others forming a semi-circle behind her.

"The print matched to another print, but it was unknown," Abby explained.

"From which crime scene Abs?" Gibbs asked, not wanting to know that their killer had killed more then the four victims they knew about.

"I double checked the results. I ran it again through AFIS and then I matched it by hand, the match is good," Abby said.

"What crime scene Abs?" Gibbs repeated a little more gruffly.

"The print is an unknown from the Santos case," Abby answered.

"The Santos case," Tony echoed.

"The print was found all over the house in Maryland," Abby explained. "Specifically the office and ….. "Abby paused, just of a moment "the basement."

Tony looked over at Gibbs, his breathing uneven, his face ashen. Gibbs reached out and gripped Tony's shoulder.

"The FBI has it as a high probability of being Enrique Pablo's," Abby said to Tony.

Tony couldn't believe it, he had to have heard wrong. It couldn't be, it just couldn't be.

"Why? Why do the Feds think its Pablo's," Tony asked, spitting out Pablo's name. "It could be anyone's. The Maryland estate was their headquarters; dozens of people must have been in it …..." Tony stopped as the grip on his shoulder became painful.

"Only two sets of prints were found in the basement Tony," Abby explained quietly. "Miguel Valdez and this unknown."

Tony looked at Gibbs, knowing without a doubt that Abby spoke the truth. The basement in the Maryland estate had been Pablo's torture chamber. It was where Tony had spent nearly three weeks in hell; he had left it a broken man, body and soul, unaware of his true self.

Only two people had access to the basement, Miguel Valdez, Pablo's right hand man, and Pablo himself. Valdez was dead, Tony had shot him himself, but Pablo had disappeared. The authorities had believed he had fled back to Columbia, no one had heard or seen Santos or Pablo since. But this print meant that Pablo had returned.

"Boss, no, I … I," Tony whispered to Gibbs. Gibbs gave Tony's shoulder a gentle squeeze before letting go.

"Tony, you're off the case, I don't want you …" Gibbs started to say.

"No," Tony all but yelled out. "No," he repeated in a calmer voice. "No Boss, I can do this. I have to do this. Please, keep me on the case."

"Tony, I don't think that's a good idea," Gibbs replied, taking in the whiteness of his senior agent's complexion and the fine tremor that seemed to be running through him.

"Boss," Tony all but pleaded.

"Damnit DiNozzo, I said ….."Gibbs cut himself off, taking a deep breath. He couldn't trust DiNozzo to follow his orders, to stay off the case, to stay in the office. It would be better to keep him next to him, in plain sight. He couldn't take the chance that DiNozzo might be able to track Pablo down. He couldn't let him face the bastard alone.

"Okay," he said. "But you disobey me just once DiNozzo, you go in a detention cell and you'll stay there till we catch the bastard. You understand?"

"Sure boss," DiNozzo replied and for one terrified second Gibbs thought that Tony was about to collapse as he swayed alarmingly before turning it into a causal perch on Abby's evidence table.

Gibbs gritted his teeth as he turned away from DiNozzo to face Abby, hoping like hell he had made the right decision because his gut was telling him that something bad was heading their way.

"Any luck with the cell phones Abby?" he asked.

"Yes. Henderson's cell was intact. Got a cell number from it. I can try to trace it and triangulate the signal. If the cell is used again I should be able to pin point it to about one hundred yards." Abby explained.

"Do it, "Gibbs ordered. "McGee, you stay and help. DiNozzo, Kate, you're with me. We're checking out the warehouse on Pier 6."


	6. Chapter 6

_This story is now nearly comleted and I will be posting a chapter a day after the weekend. Thank you for all your reviews and PM's and for waiting so patiently - the end is nigh :)_

_ Dear Head Park is completely made up._

* * *

The drive to Pier 6 was done in silence, except for the occasional gasp from Kate as Gibbs cut through the traffic a little too closely.

They flashed their badges at the Pier office and made their way to the warehouse. The Pier Master had confirmed that the warehouse was currently unused and had been empty for the last four months. They drew their weapons as they approached, DiNozzo taking off at an angle to check out the rear of the building, Kate and Gibbs heading for the large double doors at the front. Gibbs spared DiNozzo a quick look as he disappeared around the back of the warehouse.

Gibbs gave Kate a nod and they entered the building, DiNozzo coming through the back entrance seconds later.

The warehouse was clear, snapping on gloves they started to search. although Gibbs didn't really expect to find anything. It sickened him to his soul that that bastard Pablo was cutting up female Petty Officers to get his attention. He needed to know why? Why was Pablo leaving so many clues? It was obvious that he was killing the Petty Officers to get Gibbs and his team on the investigation. But for Pablo to leave Gibbs own name, spelled out in the internal organs of his victims and leave a clear bloody handprint for them to find, didn't make sense.

Did Pablo want to be caught? Or was it more likely a trap, to finish what he had started on DiNozzo. Gibbs looked up from the crate he was examining to check on DiNozzo. Only to straighten up and move away from the crate when he could see no sign of him. Dread hit him hard as he started to move across the warehouse.

"DiNozzo!" he barked, causing Kate to look up from behind an old tangle of rope.

"Boss?" DiNozzo said, coming into view from the warehouse office.

He wanted to snap at DiNozzo, telling him to stay in view, not to wander off, but he held his tongue, knowing that DiNozzo was just doing his job. But his heart still pounded and the feeling of dread was slow to drain away.

"Found something boss," DiNozzo said, stepping out of the office and towards Gibbs, holding out a small square of something, held between thumb and forefinger of his gloved hand.

"What is it?" Kate asked, having followed Gibbs across the warehouse.

"Business card," DiNozzo replied. "Cedar Trail Lodges," he quoted.

"Bag it," Gibbs ordered.

They spent another few minutes going over the warehouse, but found nothing more. They had packed up their gear and were heading for the car when Gibbs phone rang.

"Abby," he greeted; he listened for a few moments. "We're coming back now. Get McGee to track down a business called …" he looked at DiNozzo.

"Cedar Trail Lodges," DiNozzo replied.

"You get that Abs? Cedar Trail Lodges," Gibbs said. He closed the phone with a snap.

"They've tracked down the cell," Gibbs said, by means of explanation.

* * *

As soon as they walked in the bullpen, McGee was on his feet, speaking,

"Cedar Trail Lodges is owned by the September Corporation based in New York," he rattled off. "Run out of offices in New York. Own and rent out three hundred lodges in and around most of the national parks in Virginia. Everything looks above board and legit," he said.

"The cell?" Gibbs asked.

McGee picked up the plasma screen remote, clicking it to bring up a map, zooming in to the require area.

"Cell is on and is within a half mile radius of the ranger's station at Deer Head National Park," McGee said.

"Get onto to Cedar ….." Gibbs started to say.

"Already did boss," McGee said with a quick smug smile to Kate and Tony. "They have two lodges currently rented out in the park within the half mile radius."

"Good work Tim," Gibbs praised. "Gear up," he said to them all.

"Gibbs? " Kate said, "It's too easy."

McGee nodded his agreement, as Kate continued, "He killed Petty Officers to get NCIS on the investigation. Your name spelled out at the crime scene, a clear handprint, a business card conveniently left at the warehouse, "Kate listed.

"And a cell phone number we can trace, which is active, giving away his location," McGee jumped in with.

"This has been well planned Gibbs," Kate said. "He's not doing it too get caught. For some reason he his targeting you Gibbs. Maybe because you're the senior agent and he's trying to get to Tony through you," she paused as she noticed Tony flinch, "but whatever his reasons, he's not going to be at one of those lodges alone," she finished.

"I know," Gibbs said. "That's why we'll be calling in on the local LEO's and the ranger service, okay," he said sarcastically

"That's not what _I_ meant," Kate said, looking at DiNozzo, whose expression harden under her gaze.

"Gear up," Gibbs repeated, heading for the elevators.


	7. Chapter 7

Kate looked out at the passing scenery as the car bumped along the uneven surface. They had reached the nearest town to Deer Head National Park, enlisting the help of the local Sheriff and his team, as well as one of the local rangers. She was now bouncing along the uneven dirt track towards one of the rented lodges, McGee and a deputy sat in the back, with her and the Sheriff in the front. Gibbs had given explicit instructions that they were to observe the lodge before making any move towards it.

The lodge they were heading for was rented to a Brian Harper, a background check had confirmed his identity, but as Kate knew, that didn't mean much.

She watched a lake come into view, sparkling in the sunlight, before once again, being hidden from view by trees. She was worried, it unsettled her, making her feel anxious and nervous. She had tried to tell Gibbs her concerns, but in an uncommon and unexpected gesture, he had just squeezed her shoulder and walked away, leaving her frustrated and not knowing what to do next.

Her worry was for Tony. She hated the thought of him being so close to that monster Pablo. She worried that Pablo would get his hands on him again and do far worse then he had before. She knew that if Tony got the chance he would kill Pablo, with no remorse and no regret. Gibbs would too. She won't, and she doubted McGee would either, not without some attempt to bring Pablo in. She would follow procedure, even though Pablo being dead would bring Tony greater peace. She fervently hoped that Pablo won't give her the chance to follow procedure, that he would give her the opportunity to give Tony the peace he deserved.

She had tried to tell Gibbs that Tony shouldn't have come, that he shouldn't be placed so near Pablo, that Tony wasn't stable enough to make the right decisions. Tony was virtually a stranger to her now. She could feel the violence that lay just beneath the surface. She had witnessed Tony kill, when, with all his training, excellent marksmanship skills, and lighting fast reactions, he could have taken a wing shot instead. Before Pablo had tortured him, he would have never taken the kill shot, unless a civilian was in danger, now it seemed to be his default setting.

She knew Tony had PTSS, all the symptoms and signs were there. Tony had recovered from his ordeal and had bounced back to active duty and his senior status as his old self. Something had set him back; he needed professional help to guide him back. Kate worried that they were leaving it too late, that the Tony they knew would fall over the precipice and be swallowed by the darkness, to never again be the carefree, happy-go-lucky. annoying partner that she had come to respect and admire.

She felt the car slow as the Sheriff pulled into a lay-by and kill the engine.

"Cabin should be just ahead." the Sheriff said, "best to go on by foot, through the trees." He looked over at Kate as if seeking confirmation. She nodded. She pulled out her cell phone and phoned Gibbs.

"Just leaving the car now and heading in on foot Gibbs," she reported. She listened for a few seconds before snapping the phone shut.

"We take up position, observe, and only move in if we confirm it's the Harper family or it's unoccupied. If we can confirm it's Pablo, we call for backup and hold position," she said, looking at each and receiving a nod in return.

They quietly left the car, vanishing in near silence into the woods, Kate hoping against hope that this was the lodge Pablo was in.

* * *

_Another short chapter today. Back to a nice long one tomorrow. Wonder what Gibbs and DiNozzo are up to? LOL_


	8. Chapter 8

_Thank you for all the wonderful reviews, you are making me feel very guilty for allowing this story to linger. But do not fear, the end is nigh_.

_As promised a nice long chapter_

* * *

Gibbs made his way through the forest, moving away from the lodge so his movements weren't noticed, before coming up behind DiNozzo and the deputy, crouching behind the tree line using binoculars to watch the lodge.

"DiNozzo," he said quietly, crouching next to him.

"We going in?" DiNozzo asked, lowering the binoculars and looking at Gibbs.

Gibbs nodded. "There's been no movement since we got here," he replied, he looked across at the deputy. "You ready?" he asked.

"Yes sir," the deputy replied. The deputy was an older man, close to Gibbs age and even living in a small town hadn't allowed himself to get out of condition.

"Okay," Gibbs said. "Fan out when you're clear of the trees. I'll take the front, you two check the back." He received nods of confirmation.

"Let's go," they stood as one, moving silently and swiftly out of the woods.

Gibbs gut churned, in fact it was screaming at him. The name on the rental form was Maria Rudzinski, a single mother of two adult children. The background check on her and her children came back clean. But there was a lodge somewhere that had Enrique Pablo in it. Gibbs hoped to hell that it wasn't one of the rented lodges, that Pablo was somewhere in one of the eight empty Cedar Trail Lodges within the half mile radius the cell was operating in.

Gibbs ground his teeth in frustration as he moved towards the front of the lodge, Pablo was playing a dangerous game with them and Gibbs couldn't predict the next move. He gave a quick look to where DiNozzo and Hawkins were making their way to the rear of the lodge, when Hawkins suddenly stopped, a horrified look on his face as he looked at DiNozzo. DiNozzo's eyes widen in sickening realization before yelling over at Gibbs.

"Gibbs, trip wire, it's a trap," DiNozzo yelled out as he dived for Hawkins.

Gibbs turned away from the lodge, just as an explosion ripped through it, knocking him off his feet and into darkness.

* * *

Gibbs came to slowly. Pain ripping through him, he shook his head to try and clear his vision, a rattle of chains made him look up.

A chain had been thrown across a support beam and attached to the manacles that were cutting into his wrists, Gibbs straighten his legs, locking his knees, taking the weight from his wrists. His jacket and shirt were gone, leaving him bare chested.

_DiNozzo!_

Gibbs frantically looked around the small one room cabin, before spying DiNozzo curled on his side in the corner.

"DiNozzo," Gibbs called. "DiNozzo! Tony? Tony!" he sighed in relief when DiNozzo groaned and rolled onto his back.

"Hey DiNozzo, over here," Gibbs said, as DiNozzo blinked slowly, looking around the cabin, when he caught sight of Gibbs he scrabbled to his feet, almost pitching back over as a rush of dizziness hit him.

"Gibbs," he croaked, moving forward.

"Tony, you got your knife?" Gibbs asked.

"Yeah," he said, "not going to cut through chain boss."

"But it will cut through rope," Gibbs replied with a small smile, looking down at DiNozzo's bound hands.

"Huh!" DiNozzo said, looking down at his bound wrists, fumbling with his belt to pull out his buckle knife. It took awhile to cut through the thick rope, the awkward angle of the knife making the going even slower, but eventually DiNozzo was free.

He stared looking around the room, trying to find something to jimmy the locks on the manacles.

"DiNozzo, "Gibbs called to him, making him pause in his search. "You need to get going."

"What? No, I'm not leaving you Boss, Pab …" he started to say, before being interrupted by Gibbs.

"Tony, you need to get to the others. You can't get me out of these chains," Gibbs said gently.

"No Boss," DiNozzo argued. "Pablo isn't going to ….."

"That's an order DiNozzo," Gibbs interrupted again, his voice hard. "Find the others …"

"Screw your orders," DiNozzo snarled, "Thought we didn't live anyone behind?"

"Tony," Gibbs said more gently. "You're not leaving me behind. You're going to find Kate, McGee and the Sheriff and ….." Gibbs trailed off, as he looked around the cabin. "Where's Hawkins?" he asked.

DiNozzo shook his head." Hopefully alive and well back at the lodge," DiNozzo said, not believing a word he spoke.

"Tony, listen to me," Gibbs said. "You know as well as I do, that Pablo's been playing games with us. He won't be working alone. You can't get me outta these chains. You have to find the others, bring them back. Take out Pablo."

"Boss, I can't … I …" DiNozzo stumbled over his words.

"Tony, it's the right thing to do," Gibbs said. "It's the only thing we can do. Go. Go now."

They looked at each other for a long moment, before DiNozzo nodded and made his way over to the cabin door, looking out cautiously. He turned to look at Gibbs. "I'll be back," he said and then he was gone.

* * *

Pablo smiled as he watched DiNozzo exit the cabin, heading for the woods; he turned towards the two men standing beside him.

"Kill him quick," he ordered. "I have become quite fond of him. He does not deserve a lingering death."

The two men nodded, starting the engines of their dirt bikes, kicking them into gear, as they roared off after DiNozzo.

* * *

DiNozzo leaned his back against a tree, drawing in gulps of air into his burning lungs. He'd been forced into the denser part of the woods, the undergrowth tangling around, coursing him to stumble and fall numerous times. He took in a breath of air and held it, listening for the sounds of motors, one was close, too close, the other sounded further away to his left.

He took in another shuddering breath and let it out slowly, trying to regulate his breathing. He didn't have time for this, he had to get help. He had no idea where he was in the park, how far he was from a ranger's office, or Kate and McGee. He had no phone, no weapon; the two dirt bikes were relentless in their pursuit. He pulled the back of his hand across his forehead wiping away the sweat, leaving a dirty smudge behind.

He had to find some way of taking out the two bikes, and hope that Pablo hadn't left any other surprises in the woods to slow him down. He had to get Gibbs out of Pablo's hand; he didn't have time for this shit.

The sound of the bike drew closer; he bent down and picked up a sturdy looking branch, clutching it in both hands, pressing back further against the tree. The bike edged closer to his hiding place, the front wheel come into view. With a roar he pushed away from the tree and swung the branch with all his strength, hitting the rider square in the face, snapping the branch in two. The rider fell from the bike, DiNozzo followed him down, raising the broken branch to strike the riders head repeatedly.

DiNozzo threw what was left of the branch to the ground, he picked up the fallen semi-automatic rifle, checking the clip and slamming it back into place. He patted the rider down, pulling a nine mil from the back of his pants and a cell from a pocket. He flipped it open, realizing it was his own phone, he pressed speed dial, nothing. He looked at the phone again, no signal, he cursed.

He went to the fallen bike and checked it over, he revved it into life and kicked it into gear, moving forward slowly as he negotiated around the trees. Leaving behind the dead, faceless rider without a backward glance.

* * *

Kate looked down at the Sheriff as he kneeled beside his dead deputy. "I'm sorry Sheriff," she said.

"He was a good man, been with me for fifteen years. Wife and four kids," the Sheriff said sadly, standing up.

Kate was about to say something more when McGee came running up.

"Three dead inside," he reported. "Shot in the head, like the deputy." The Sheriff gave him a sharp look. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean," McGee said, flustered, grinding to a halt.

"The Harpers checked out, "Kate said, "Three bodies inside are probably Maria Rudzinski and her children. The Deputy Hawkins was shot, and not injured in the explosion. The explosion was set off by a trip wire and no sign of Gibbs or Tony," she reeled off.

"Pablo?" McGee asked.

"The whole thing was a set-up, his every moved carefully planned," Kate said.

"But how would he know which lodge Gibbs and Tony would take?" McGee asked.

Kate shook her head. "We had to go in different directions from the ranger's office. Pablo must have had people watching out for us. They knew which lodges we were heading too. He had people watching both. When they confirmed which one Gibbs and Tony were heading for, they killed the occupants and set the trap," Kate theorized.

"But we followed the cell phones signal here," McGee argued.

"Which we could only pinpoint to a half mile radius, because of the lack of towers," Kate said.

"Which was the lure to get us here, along with the Cedar Trail Lodges card, so they could set up a trap," McGee said in understanding.

"So where the hell are Agents Gibbs and DiNozzo?" the Sheriff asked.

* * *

DiNozzo opened up the bike as the trees thinned and he could see a clearing up ahead. The roar of the other bike directly behind him, bullets whizzed and thumped into trees around him.

He hunched over the handlebars as he hit the clearing, making himself a smaller target, concentrating on opening up some space between him and the other bike.

Something pinged behind him, the bike suddenly stuttering and losing power, he cursed as he hit the ground in a role, coming up firing at the other rider, causing him to swerve and come of his bike.

DiNozzo sent the entire clip in the rider's direction, dumping the gun when it clicked on an empty chamber. He pulled the nine mil from his pocket, turned, and ran across the clearing.

He heard the other bikes engine restart; he put everything he had into running towards the trees at the other end of the clearing. He suddenly realized that the trees weren't getting any bigger, that he was in fact running full speed to the edge of a cliff and that it was the tops of the trees growing from the bottom of the cliff that he was seeing.

He slowed slightly as indecision hit, but a burst of weapons fire, sending up a shower of dirt to his left, made him come to a quick decision.

"I'm sorry boss," he huffed out, as he ran to the cliffs edge and leapt into the treetops.

* * *

_Wonder what Gibbs is up to?_


	9. Chapter 9

_The first part of this chapter is also the begining of the story. But due to the length of time it has taken me to post this story, I thought I would include it as a continuation to avoid confusion._

* * *

The darkness started to lighten. Sound returned, a mass of buzzing with an under laying beat, steady and rhythmic. Feeling returned; dampness, cold, pain. The pain took hold, thumping and unrelenting. The light started to dim, darkness creeping back. Pain started to fade. Memory returned.

He opened his eyes and took a deep breath, pain rushed back and he fought back the threatening darkness with gritted teeth, closed eyes and shallow breaths. After a few minutes the battle won, he opened his eyes once again, chancing a deeper breath, pain flared and throbbed, but the darkness did not threaten.

He focused on the trees swaying in the breeze above him, there was a blurriness about them, he moved his right arm and held his hand above his face, the fingers were blurry, but there were only five of them. He moved his arms to his sides and used his elbows to help push himself up. Pain throbbed in his head and he blinked his eyes several times to keep his focus, the darkness trying to push itself back in from the outer edges of his vision. He took slow deep breaths as the pain settled into a rhythmic throb.

He looked down at his legs and gingerly moved them one at a time, they moved without too much protest. He pushed himself upright, gripping the nearest tree as vertigo rushed him. As it passed he slowly looked up, he couldn't see the top of the cliff through the branches of the trees, something he was grateful for, if he couldn't see the top from the bottom, others couldn't see the bottom from the top. He was astounded that his leap from the cliff top into the canopy of trees below had resulted only in cuts, bruises and a pounding headache, which Ducky would declare a concussion, but staying on the cliff top would have meant certain death.

He looked down at his watch; the face had gone, the time unreadable. He pulled out his cell from his jacket pocket and flipped it open, the casing was cracked, but the phoned worked, and he breathed a sigh of relief that the phone was picking up a signal. He hit speed dial.

"Kate, it's me," he said quietly.

He paused to listen to Kate's reply.

"I don't know; get McGee to track my phone."

He listened as Kate relayed his request. Kate spoke to him, asking a question.

"Pablo," he replied. "He's got Gibbs.

* * *

"Pablo's got Gibbs?" Kate repeated. "Tony, are you okay?" she asked.

"_I'm fine," _came the reply. _"Get McGee to run a trace on Gibbs phone too."_

"Tony, what the hell happened to you and Gibbs?" Kate asked, she turned her head away from the phone to address McGee "Tim, can you trace Gibbs phone too?"

"Not a problem," McGee replied, "Getting a GPS signal on Tony's phone now."

"_The whole thing was a set-up Kate. Pablo's one step ahead of us. The lodge was bobby trapped …"_

"We know Tony. We've just come from there. We're back at the Sheriff's office," Kate interrupted. "McGee's got you position now." Kate said, handing the phone to McGee.

"Hey Tony," McGee greeted. "You're about a mile from a trail, east of your position. You're pretty deep in the Park; you're about six miles south of the ranger's station."

"_Thanks McGee. You got a fix on Gibbs cell yet?"_

"Working on it now Tony. I'm passing you back to Kate," McGee said, passing the phone back to Kate, so he had both hands free to type information into his laptop.

"_Kate? Does the Sheriff know of any cabins near to where I am?"_

Kate looked up at the Sheriff. "Do you know if there are any cabins anywhere near where Tony is?" she asked.

"There was on old line cabin up that way," the Sheriff replied. "Use to be used as an overnight stop by local hunters and the rangers. Haven't heard of it being used in years."

"So it could still be there?" Kate pressed.

"Sure," the Sheriff confirmed.

"Tony, did you hear that?" Kate said into the cell.

"_Yeah. Kate, that's where Pablo's got Gibbs. He's chained to one of the beams. I had to leave him. Get some back-up and get up there now_."

"How long will it take us to get there Sheriff?" Kate asked.

"Couple of hours," the Sheriff replied. "Why?"

"It's where Gibbs is," Kate replied. Both McGee and the Sheriff gave her startled looks. "We need to get moving. McGee we need back up, phone ….."

"It will take too long for any of your guys to get up from D.C," the Sheriff said. "I can get a couple of other Sheriff's and their deputies to meet us up at the ranger's station in half an hour."

Kate nodded. "Okay. Thanks Sheriff."

The Sheriff nodded back and picked up his office phone and started to make calls.

"Tony, you get all that?" Kate asked.

"_Yeah. Kate, did Deputy Hawkins make it?"_

"I'm sorry Tony, "Kate replied. "He was shot dead at the lodge, as were the Rudzinski's."

"_Shit,"_ there was a pause_. "McGee got me a fix yet?"_

"Tim, have you a fix on Gibbs cell yet?" Kate asked.

"Yeah, it's moving in on Tony's position," McGee said, puzzled.

"Tony, what's going on? The GPS on Gibbs cell has it moving to your position," Kate relayed to DiNozzo.

"_It's all part of the set-up Kate. Pablo chained Gibbs, but only tied me with rope. Soon as I got out of the cabin, two goons on dirt bikes came after me. Took one out and managed to lose the other one. Don't know why they were given our cells."_

"Tony?" Kate said worriedly, as she moved round to stand behind McGee. "He's coming down the trail."

"_Kate, just get to the cabin. Get Gibbs out of there. I'll take care of this guy."_

"Tony?"

"_Now Kate!"_

Kate looked down at the phone as Tony broke the connection. McGee shifted around to look up at her. "Let's get Gibbs," she said.

McGee nodded, not voicing his concern over DiNozzo, seeing the same emotion reflected back from Kate.

* * *

Tony snapped the cell phone shut and put it back into his jacket pocket. He ejected the clip from the 9 mil and checked it, before sliding it back into place. He started to move east, towards the trail.

He'd been moving through the trees for about fifteen minutes when he saw the trail. He stopped, staying hidden behind a tree, listening for the sound of the dirt bike. He heard nothing.

He inched closer, going from tree to tree, until he ran out of trees. There was still no sound of the dirt bike. He stepped out on to the trail, and came face to face with the dirt bike and its rider, a couple of hundred yards up the trail. The bike was lent against a tree, as the rider studied a map, he suddenly looked up and straight at DiNozzo, but he was too slow. Tony shot twice, aiming for the chest, he didn't miss.

The rider crumpled to the ground, his hands frantically clawing at his chest, he looked up as a shadow fell across him. He never heard the shot that killed him.

DiNozzo bent over the rider and patted him down. Fishing out Gibbs cell and finding another 9 mil. He picked up the map from the ground and studied it. It only took him a few moments to pinpoint his position and work out a route back to the cabin.

He brought the dirt bike roaring to life and shot up the trail, heading for the cabin. To save Gibbs.

* * *

_Thank you for your patience. Only one more chapter to go! Yeah! :)_


	10. Chapter 10

_Yes, that's right folks, you read it correctly. This story is complete, finished, that's it!'_

_Thank you for sticking with it and for your brilliant reviews - bless ya!_

* * *

Gibbs gritted his teeth, breathing through the pain.

"I assure you Agent Gibbs, Agent DiNozzo is quite dead," Pablo said as he stood in front of Gibbs.

Gibbs spat a glob of spit and blood into Pablo's face, his head snapping to the side as Pablo backhanded him.

"You … don't know … DiNozzo," Gibbs panted out.

Pablo took out a handkerchief from his pocket, wiping his scared face clean, "I took your precious Agent and turned him into something else. I touched the darkness in his soul, the real him," he sneered at Gibbs.

"You're … full of crap," Gibbs shot back. "Who did he come to, when you set him loose? Me, he came to me. You hurt him you son of a bitch, but you didn't destroy him," Gibbs sneered back. Which earnt him a baseball bat in the gut, driving the breath from his lungs and sending bolts of pain up his arms as his knees gave out.

A hand tangled in his hair, pulling his head up, as he struggled to straighten his legs.

"What is it?" Pablo screamed at him. "What is it that makes him loyal to you?"

"You … really … don't … know … do you?" Gibbs said, smiling as much as his abused face would allow.

"Tell me!" Pablo raged.

"Go to hell," Gibbs snarled.

"You will tell me Agent Gibbs. I can make this last for a very long time, or I can make it quick," Pablo said, letting go of Gibbs hair and stepping back. "The choice is yours."

"Tell you what?" Gibbs asked. "How to gain respect and loyalty from those you command? Why Tony came back to his team, after the hell you put him through? What DiNozzo is going to do with you when he finds you?"

"I have told you repeatedly, DiNozzo is dead," Pablo said. "He is no match to two armed men on motorcycles, he ….."

"You don't know DiNozzo," Gibbs interrupted with a smile. "I do."

Pablo took another step back and nodded to the man who had stood silently in the corner until now. The man bent down for a second before moving towards Gibbs, sparks of electricity lit up the gloomy interior as exposed wires were touched against each other.

* * *

DiNozzo cut the engine to the dirt bike and pulled out the map from his jacket pocket. He studied it for a while, listening to the sounds of the forest around him. If he was right, he was less than a mile from the cabin. He would have to continue on foot, he had no idea how many men Pablo had at the cabin and he couldn't risk alerting them with the sound of the dirt bike.

He pulled out his cell and flipped it open, there was no signal, he cursed. It had only been an hour or so since he spoke to Kate, it would take her another hour at least to get to the cabin.

Fear slowly crept into him. He tried to push it away, but it kept pushing on, threatening to choke him.

THis hands started to shake. He let the bike fall and stepped away from it, moving forward towards the cabin.

He stopped, gulping in air. He couldn't do this; he couldn't face Pablo, not alone. Everything the monster had done to him hit him full force, making his head pound, his limbs shake. He fell to the ground as his knees gave out. He felt tears running down his face as he wrapped his arms around his middle, rocking forwards and back, forwards and back.

He couldn't stop the images, one after the other. He flinched at every remembered horror that Pablo had inflicted upon him. He fell forward, his forehead touching the ground, his whole body wracked with tremors. He could hear himself sobbing, but couldn't make himself stop.

He couldn't do this alone. He didn't want the pain, the darkness, the anger. He wanted to be whole again. To be connected to those around him, to worship life, embrace each new day, not fall asleep each night, dreading the impending dawn.

He needed Gibbs. Gibbs, who always understood him. Who knew his strengths, his weaknesses. Who never judged, but guided. Who had turned him from a good cop, to a brilliant investigator. Who believed in him. Trusted him. Who was more a father to him than his own.

_Gibbs! _Tony scrambled to his feet, making his way through the woods, moving faster and faster towards the cabin. He had suffered enough, Pablo had taken away too much already, he wasn't taking away anything else.

* * *

Gibbs struggled to control his breathing. Tremors running through his entire body as agony ripped through him. Pablo moved into view.

"This is what I did to Agent DiNozzo every day," Pablo said.

"I know," Gibbs gritted out.

"You know?" Pablo asked with astonishment. "He told you?"

"Everything,"

"Did he tell you how he begged for mercy, sobbing like a little girl," Pablo asked with a smirk.

"Everything," Gibbs repeated with a growl.

Pablo smiled. "It disgusted you? To have such weakness in one of your men?" Pablo asked.

"He made me proud," Gibbs replied.

"Proud!" Pablo said scornfully. "A grown man pissing his pants ….."

"You really are a twisted son of a bitch," Gibbs growled. "You tortured him for days. Every day! But he still made his way home, to his team, his family. You want to see what disgust and weakness look like. Look in a mirror," Gibbs mocked.

He arched up in agony as electricity shot through his body, his skin burning where the bare wires gorged into it. He struggled to breath through the pain, could feel his chest start to tighten, and then it was gone. His ears roaring with the sound of his pounding heart. His head was jerked up and he could feel the cold steel of a blade bite into his neck.

He could hear rumbling as the pounding in his ears started to ease. He started to make out voices, he opened his eyes, suddenly realizing that he had squeezed them shut, and looked straight into the face of Tony DiNozzo, who was pointing a gun at someone behind him.

"Tony," he managed to say, before his head was jerked back again and the knife bit further into his neck.

"Hey boss," Tony greeted, smiling. "Me and the Phantom of the Opera where just talking about you."

Gibbs frowned. What the hell was DiNozzo smiling about, he thought to himself and suddenly it was there. The thing, the connection, the whatever, that let him know what DiNozzo was going to do, was back. He almost sagged in relief.

"You have become quite the thorn in my side, Agent DiNozzo," Pablo said from behind Gibbs, the knife on Gibbs neck easing slightly.

DiNozzo shrugged. "It's a gift," he replied flippantly.

"Put down your gun Agent DiNozzo, there is no need for more death this day," Pablo said sincerely.

DiNozzo broke out into a wide grin. "You're kidding right? You're standing behind my boss, with a knife to his throat and you want me to put down my gun?" DiNozzo asked.

"What other alternative is there Agent DiNozzo? Any other way will lead to the death of Agent Gibbs. You will of course, kill me, but Agent Gibbs' blood will be on your hands forever," Pablo said.

"Well, there is another way," Tony said pleasantly.

"And what is that Agent DiNozzo," Pablo smiled.

"This," Tony said and shot Pablo twice in the head. Gibbs moved to the side and back, closer to Pablo as he fell to the ground, the knife moving away from Gibbs neck and falling with a clatter to the floor, dropped by Pablo's dead hand.

"Boss, "Tony said, starting to move closer, just as the cabin door shot inwards. DiNozzo moved towards Gibbs, putting himself between Gibbs and whoever was coming through the door, his gun up, ready to fire. Only to lower it again, as Kate dived into the room, closely followed by McGee and the Sheriff, quickly taking in the scene before lowering their weapons.

"You got here fast," Tony said.

"Brothers got a helicopter," the Sheriff said, by way of an explanation.

"Do ya mind?" Gibbs said, rattling his chains.

"On it boss," Tony said, as the team started to search the cabin for the keys.

* * *

_One week later _

Gibbs watched as Tony paced around the small office. Picking up a magazine and quickly discarding, touching a plant, straightening a picture, always moving, never still.

"DiNozzo, why don't you sit down?" Gibbs asked with a smile.

"Sure boss," Tony replied, flopping into the seat next to Gibbs, to stand back up and start pacing again within seconds.

Gibbs put down the September '98 issue of "_Carpenters Monthly" _and stood up. He grabbed DiNozzo by the shoulders and pushed him down into one the chairs; he sat down next to him.

"Tony, we talked about this," Gibbs said gently. "You said you were ready."

"I am," Tony said, "I was," he said dejectedly.

The silence grew as Gibbs waited for Tony to continue talking.

"Boss, I can't," he whispered, the shimmer of tears in his eyes.

Gibbs grabbed his shoulder and squeezed it, hard. Tony looked up in surprise.

"Okay," Gibbs said, standing up. "Let's go."

"What?" Tony asked, still sitting.

"Tony, if you're not ready, you're not ready. We'll make another appointment for another time," Gibbs said, picking up the magazine he was reading and slipping it into his jacket pocket.

"We can go?" Tony said in surprise.

"Sure," Gibbs said with a shrug.

"Just like that?"

"Just like that."

"I don't want to go," Tony said, looking up at Gibbs in confusion.

"Okay," Gibbs said, sitting back down and pulling out the magazine.

There was silence again.

"It's just, I, well, I'm not sure," Tony ground to a halt, he took a deep breath. "Boss, what if he can't fix me," Tony whispered.

"You're not broken Tony," Gibbs said. "You have PTSS; you just need some help getting back on track." Gibbs replied, his eyes never leaving the magazine.

It had been a hell of a week. The agonizing journey through the forest to the ranger's station, a three day hospital stay before he got fed up and signed himself out AMA. To get back to NCIS HQ to find Tony struggling to cope. Somewhere along the line Tony had turned a corner, had stepped away from the edge of the precipice, but was unable to figure out which way to turn now.

Gibbs had dragged him up to his place with Ducky in tow and for the last three days they had been regaling Tony with their own stories of PTSS. It hadn't taken much to convince Tony to see a psychiatrist. Ducky had immediately recommended one. Ducky had confessed to Gibbs after an exhausted Tony had gone to bed, that after his talk with Tony, Ducky had started to research appropriate psychiatrists.

Whose waiting room they were now sitting in. Except Tony was getting more nervous and anxious by the second.

Gibbs put down the magazine and leant into Tony's personal space. "DiNozzo, the team needs you. I need my Senior Agent. You can do this," Gibbs said, bringing his hand up and gently smacking Tony upside the head.

Tony smiled. "I can do this boss," he said.

"I know," Gibbs replied, picking up his magazine again.

"Agent DiNozzo," a tall Afro-American man said. "I'm Doctor Crane, would you like to come into my office," he said with a smile.

Tony looked across at Gibbs, who gave him a brief nod. Tony stood up and followed the Doctor.

"Doctor Crane huh?" he said.

"Yes," Crane smiled. "Peter Crane, not Frasier Crane."

"Peter Crane? As in Kung Fu: The Legend Continues, Peter Crane?" Tony asked with a smile.

The Doctor laughed. "Well, I won't mind some of his moves," he confessed.

Their voices faded as they reached the office and the door closed. Gibbs turned the page of his magazine. It was a long, rocky road ahead, but Gibbs knew without a doubt that they would make it, all of them.

All he needed to do know was get DiNozzo to shave of that damn beard.


End file.
